The occurrence of diabetes is widespread, with approximately 8% of the population in the United States suffering from diabetes. Diabetes is a chronic disease characterized by high blood sugar due to the body's inability to effectively produce and/or use insulin. Diabetes can lead to a variety of physical complications, including but not limited to renal failure, blindness, nerve damage, heart disease, sleep apnea, and celiac disease. For example, in the United States, diabetes is the leading cause of renal failure, blindness, amputation, stroke, and heart attack. Also in the United States, diabetes is the sixth leading cause of death and has been shown to reduce the life expectancy of middle-aged adults by about five to ten years.
The most common form of diabetes is type two diabetes mellitus (hereinafter “T2DM”). T2DM is characterized by hyperglycemia, insulin resistance, β-cell dysfunction, and dysregulated hepatic gluconeogenesis. Persons suffering from T2DM experience a loss of glucose-stimulated insulin secretion related to the impaired release of stored insulin granules from β-cells in the first phase of insulin secretion. In the second phase of insulin secretion, persons suffering from T2DM experience a gradual loss of the ability to actively synthesize insulin in response to glucose stimuli.
The prevalence of T2DM is increasing and in 2002, T2DM resulted in greater than $130 billion in health care expenses. As such, new therapies for effectively treating T2DM are needed.